Our one stop bus shop

By Organic Farm Share | Published: May 18, 2012

In February, we purchased a bus and began its transformation into our one-stop-bus-shop on wheels.

We are now nearing the end of the first of two stages: The first stage was to reconstruct the bus’s body which included raising the roof, removing the passenger windows, replacing the windscreen and installing a second entrance/exit.

Raising the roof

We expect to complete stage two – the interior refurbishment, which includes solar refrigeration, skylights, shelving, flooring, etc. – in just over 3 months’ time.

How many shops/places do you visit each week to buy your groceries? Organic Farm Share aims to supply all of our members’ weekly groceries (including items like toilet paper). The groceries will be delivered on our Organic Shop on Wheels which will stop for several hours in convenient locations for owner-members to do their weekly shopping – either picking up pre-ordered groceries or hopping on the bus and shopping on the spot. Fun, convenient, affordable.

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Cute chick

By Alf Orpen | Published: May 11, 2012

We now have 400 cute Red Lohmann chickens being taken care of on an organic farm about 50 km from ours. Farmers, Michael and Kerry will take care of the chicks for us for around 3 months while we get our mobile chicken housing built.

Organic Farm Share farmer, Lyndon, with one of our Red Lohmann chicks

Red Lohmanns are good layers, producing 5 to 6 eggs per week, so we can expect around 2000 organic, free-range eggs per week by late August/early September. As they will move regularly to fresh pasture, they will also fertilise the soil as part of their daily activities.

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A win-win organic ecosystem

By Organic Farm Share | Published: May 5, 2012

At our recent co-producers meeting, it was exciting to see the level of interest many of our owner-members have in producing and supplying delicious organic foods and treats for Organic Farm Share. Items ranging from breads, cheeses, tempeh, miso, raw chocolate, kombucha, nut milks, ice cream, pastas, sauces and jams were just some of the many food items being represented that day.

It’s a win-win organic ecosystem for all concerned:

  • Our co-producers will have an organic business producing organic foods for local people.
  • Owner-members (shareholders in Organic Farm Share) can purchase affordable, high-quality, locally produced organic foods.
  • Organic Farm Share stimulates a local organic economy by offering employment and business opportunities.

All shareholders in Organic Farm Share are asked to fill in a survey of their weekly grocery needs and wishes. This helps us determine what to grow and produce on our farm along with the many types of foods we need our co-producers to supply.

It doesn’t get much better than this. Affordable organic food that is locally grown, locally produced and locally consumed. What foods would be on your wish list?

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Don’t spend what you don’t have

By Alf Orpen | Published: April 28, 2012

“Don’t spend what you don’t have” has been one of our foundation policies at Organic Farm Share and whilst we are not averse to short term (around 12 months) finance, we believe long term loans can bring a company to its knees very quickly should some unexpected change occur.

This is why 85% of all investments in Organic Farm Share went straight to the purchase of our land until it was completely paid off – as this, in our opinion, is real security for all concerned.

Whilst I am not a fan of investment for the sake of investment alone, I do concur with one of the world’s most successful investors, Warren Buffett, when he stated, “In a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks.”

We are convinced a new form of agriculture  and distribution is now necessary and we call this new form Community Owned Agriculture, where each person has a direct interest in their food source.

As we are getting closer to beginning operations as a debt free company, we invite you to come along to one of our Kitchen Table Talks and learn about the positive impact you can have by investing with us. The redeemable investment of $4,000 (the cost of a share in Organic Farm Share) will return both you and others in our society many tangible benefits.

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Participation, Education and Community

By Organic Farm Share | Published: April 20, 2012

On our farm, we have farmers growing our food for us but our owner-members also have the opportunity to participate in the farm through working bees and workshops. Next month we have our first working bee when we will construct our first greenhouse – a geodesic dome.

Geodesic Dome greenhouse (ours will be twice this size)

Other activities offered to owner-members over the coming months include working bees for planting over 15,000 vegetable seedlings, the planting of over 2000 fruit and nut trees, and workshops on compost tea and seed-saving.

 

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Soil – a living organism

By Organic Farm Share | Published: April 14, 2012

“We know more about the movement of celestial bodies than about the soil underfoot”.  Leonardo da Vinci

Creation stories from many diverse cultures have us originating from the soil. Even the Bible has the first people named Adam (from the Hebrew word adama meaning “earth” or “soil”) and Eve (from hava meaning “living”). Together, they hint to us that life comes from soil and the soil is alive. Both are literally true.

E.O. Wilson, professor of ecology at Harvard University, states that “the soil is a living organism…. It’s dynamic. It’s full of life. And it does not produce anything for human beings unless it’s sustained in that living condition.”

In one gram of healthy soil there can be over a billion living micro-organisms which perform a variety of beneficial functions including protecting plant tissue from infections, whilst also unlocking nutrients and minerals so plants can use them.

At Organic Farm Share we take care of the soil through biological applications such as biodynamic and compost-tea preparations for increased crop health and fertility.

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Our local living economy

By Organic Farm Share | Published: April 6, 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Organic Farm Share is not just about growing and producing the on-farm basics, we will also supply quality, nutrient-dense organic grocery lines such as bakery items, sauces, raw treats and other items on people’s wish lists in the surveys.

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Our organic shop on wheels

By Organic Farm Share | Published: March 23, 2012

During February we identified a suitable bus for Organic Farm Share’s distribution and have begun the modifications and fit-out required for our Organic Shop on Wheels which will include fully solar-powered refrigeration.

Our owner-members are located within a 200km radius of our farm, stretching from Lismore to Brisbane. People have different shopping preferences: some like to shop online and just pick-up their order, others like to see, touch and smell before they buy. At Organic Farm Share, our owner-members will be able to do both. The Organic Shop on Wheels will stop at convenient locations for owner-members to come and either pick up food and groceries they have pre-ordered or get on the bus and select what they want.

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Water Harvesting

By Organic Farm Share | Published: March 19, 2012

This beautiful photo of the Border Ranges National Park in northern NSW is the backdrop of our farm in Unumgar. This is also where the majority of the farm’s water comes from.

This dam on our property is roughly 200m in length and holds about 7 million litres of water. As the dam is around 40 metres higher than the flats below, the horticulture areas on the flats can be gravity fed with water from the dam without the use of pumps.

Besides water harvesting, the dam will also carry fish such as bass and perch, which are native to this region. The fish can be harvested and their effluent will create nutrient-dense water to feed the vegetables and fruits growing on the fields below alleviating any need to bring fertilisers such as fish emulsion onto the property.

 

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Organic Farm Share presents…

By Organic Farm Share | Published: February 18, 2012

2PM to 5:30PM, $20

NERANG BICENTENNIAL COMMUNITY CENTRE
833 SOUTHPORT-NERANG RD, NERANG

The Glocals Forum is a platform for local, social, health & environmental leaders presenting practical approaches & solutions that can be measured & witnessed. We call them Glocals. They come from all walks of life and disciplines with one thing in common; they’re out there actualising transformative ideas that have the capacity to regenerate both society & the environment we live in. Each Glocal has an opportunity to give the essence of their transformational idea for our bioregion in 20 minutes & closes with a 2 minute practical “Transition Request” that you can action & contribute to glocal change. Also featuring some great local musicians with lovely Gold Coast Glocal, Nadia Sunde, as MC.

CLICK HERE TO BOOK NOW

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